Ask the Author: Kate Monro
Answered Questions (3)
Kate Monro
I like picking a subject and exploring it with lots of different people so that you build a truly 360 degree picture - because nothing in this world is set in stone or black and white. Digging around the grey areas is the only way to get the real story. Lately I've been doing this with journalism so that I can explore new areas without committing to a book (as like many writers, I also do a day job/freelance work).
My latest obsession has been the changing face of masculinity and I examined this with men aged 18-87 for The Independent last summer. Men were the best story tellers when I was researching my book and they were touching, candid interviewees once again for this piece.
I also asked men & women to explore how their sexual lives have evolved over the course of their lives for The Guardian. Again, show stoppingly candid interviews that reveal the true nature of people's intimate lives as opposed to the broad - often short sighted - brush strokes created by the media.
My latest obsession has been the changing face of masculinity and I examined this with men aged 18-87 for The Independent last summer. Men were the best story tellers when I was researching my book and they were touching, candid interviewees once again for this piece.
I also asked men & women to explore how their sexual lives have evolved over the course of their lives for The Guardian. Again, show stoppingly candid interviews that reveal the true nature of people's intimate lives as opposed to the broad - often short sighted - brush strokes created by the media.
Kate Monro
I think it is curiosity that inspires almost anyone to write. The need to answer questions. For me, writing is the physical result of curiously. I enjoy exploring the disparities between the world we think we live in - and the world we actually live in.
Social media is a great example. It can feel like such a tyranny but it has also made us far more accountable - whether as humans, consumers or as brands - and more collaborative. The digital world is constantly throwing up opportunities to trust, connect and co-create with total strangers whether via Airbnb, Uber, Borrow My Doggy and guess what? People are actually mostly ok. The world is almost certainly safer and more benign than we perceive it to be, despite the barrage of terrible news.
At least this is what is possessing me today. Ask me tomorrow and it will be something different.
Social media is a great example. It can feel like such a tyranny but it has also made us far more accountable - whether as humans, consumers or as brands - and more collaborative. The digital world is constantly throwing up opportunities to trust, connect and co-create with total strangers whether via Airbnb, Uber, Borrow My Doggy and guess what? People are actually mostly ok. The world is almost certainly safer and more benign than we perceive it to be, despite the barrage of terrible news.
At least this is what is possessing me today. Ask me tomorrow and it will be something different.
Kate Monro
I got the idea on holiday with my boyfriend during one of those 'how did you lose yours' type conversations and I was immediately struck - like, get me on a plane home now so I can begin this idea struck - by how many different stories I might hear if I kept asking this question.
And that virginity loss stories are a reflection of people's upbringings, culture and the time in which they were raised. So not only would this be a scintillating, funny, poignant and at times scary collection of stories, but that it would be a social document as well. Something we could read and learn from in a hundred years time (or now!)
It also quickly became clear that there is a gap in the market so to speak. That we have a need to talk about the sexual experiences that we are actually having, as opposed to the glossy version of sex promoted by the media at large.
Once I started a blog and gave people a place to tell these stories, there was literally no stopping them/us/me.
And that virginity loss stories are a reflection of people's upbringings, culture and the time in which they were raised. So not only would this be a scintillating, funny, poignant and at times scary collection of stories, but that it would be a social document as well. Something we could read and learn from in a hundred years time (or now!)
It also quickly became clear that there is a gap in the market so to speak. That we have a need to talk about the sexual experiences that we are actually having, as opposed to the glossy version of sex promoted by the media at large.
Once I started a blog and gave people a place to tell these stories, there was literally no stopping them/us/me.
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